An Ann Arbor-based, 10-day outdoor festival of contemporary art, called POP-X, kicks off on Thursday at Liberty Plaza (255 E. Liberty St.), courtesy of The Ann Arbor Art Center, which aims to make this an annual event.

Free and open to the public daily, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (October 15-24), the festival will showcase nine 10x10 foot pop-up art pavilions, designed by architect and Huron Building Company owner Kreg Norgaard. In addition to housing POP-X's art in this inaugural year, the pavilions will be for sale, for use as a yard installation for work or play.

During POP-X, each pavilion will feature an installation by an artist or artist collective that, according to a press release, "encourages investigation and interaction by visitors as they move in and out of each structure. The artist exhibitions of POP-X are diverse in media and their creators are diverse in background."

POP-X artists, to have their work considered for exhibition, responded to an open call for artists and submitted installation proposals, and four jurors - Yen Azzaro, Lily Cox-Richard, Harrell Fletcher, and Nick Tobier - selected The Girls Group, Joe Levickas, Brenda Oelbaum, Kate Robertson, and Nick Zagar. With counsel from artistic advisors, the jury also invited three others to exhibit: the Ann Arbor Women Artists, Nick Azzaro, and Chazz Miller.

"From discovering artists and collaborators new to us, to stretching ourselves to do something that feels big, we hope POP*X will continue to grow the Art Center's community role as a hub for imaginative ideas, new artistic voices, and explorations in the arts," said Marie Klopf, Ann Arbor Art Center President and CEO, in a press release.

The event will also feature community programs like music and theater performances, dinners, and pop-up picnics (with local celebrity mystery guests), drop-in art-making workshops, and panel discussions about creativity and innovation. To learn more, visit www.popxannarbor.com.

"POP*X started as part of a long-term vision to encourage the visual arts in Washtenaw County, Michigan. Seeing what other communities nation-wide are doing to enrich their visual arts experiences, a small core group of people in Ann Arbor set long-term goals for our local cultural enhancement. Our intentions include enabling people of all ages and all demographics, artists and non-artists alike, to have opportunities to learn art skills, create things, and work collaboratively with others to make shared community arts projects," said a founding partner of POP*X, Lucie Nisson, in a press release.

Jenn McKee is an entertainment reporter for The Ann Arbor News. Reach her at jennmckee@mlive.com or 734-623-2546, and follow her on Twitter @jennmckee.